High Point Fall Market 2018

I did a whirlwind trip to the High Point Market yesterday, left the house at 4 a.m. and walked into the first showroom at 9 a.m., then left at 3:30 p.m. and got home at 10 p.m. Long day!

I didn't go so much to order product but to talk to industry executives about issues that affect our industry and service levels. A lot of covered about the Chinese tariffs going into place (more on that in another thread) and I checked out a few new showrooms but found nothing I wanted to order that was from new makers.

There's a lot of cookie-cutter stuff out there and I will only spend a few minutes in a showroom checking quality of the build. If I don't like the basic workmanship, I'm out of the showrooms pretty fast. In particular I searched out showrooms that some of you here ask about - brands and makers i don't carry. I don't want to name names in a forum, but there's a lot of junk out there folks. What I also observe is OTHER dealers buying some of this product and I'm pretty shocked that most of them don't know what makes a quality piece. They don't get in and under it - they talk about the style and form and price point, but don't check to see how it's made. I think a lot of them don't know what to look for quite honestly. I also ticked off a few showroom people because they are VERY hard sell and aggressive to dealers and stand in front of you so you can't get out the exit door. A typical exchange might be:

"Leaving so soon, sir? Where are you from? What can we help you with?"

"Sorry, your product isn't a match for my store, I'm just headed out" I will say.

"Why do you think that? I'm sure we can change finishes or make tweaks to work for your customers"

"No, not really. I don't care for the build quality of the pieces, they don't meet my standards"

'Sir, you are mistaken! You don't know quality goods - how long have you been in this business?"

"Thirty-two years, and I know a mortise and tenon joint from a doweled one and a dovetail joint from a bang-up, and strip-board glue-ups from wide board builds....now excuse me while I leave your showroom"

Market turnout was not very heavy from my observations, it seemed to be lightly attended which made any dealer walking into a showroom like a tuna dropped into the water in front of sharks. I prefer to be left alone and know that if I need assistance, I can find it. I'm also confident the lines I carry are still well-made and some of the better pieces out there. What was particularly surprising to me was the Hooker showroom. Hooker is 100% imported and I tell you - some of the pieces there are inexpensive and have very nice builds to them. I liked much of what they had to offer in their newer pieces and will post some photos of interesting ones here in this thread.

Didn't see much that interested me in the Bradington-Young showroom. Pretty much the same stuff they always have - The line (to me) mostly shows lack of design imagination and is uninspiring. Its decent build, but I didn't feel the need to buy anything for the floor.

The Century Showroom was a disappointment. It's brand new and was very sterile, as if thrown together very quickly. They had a lot of pieces in their showroom (I was told 2,000) but the stark white floors and lack of much design effort was underwhelming. When you go to dozens of showrooms, you have to make yours stand out if you want to catch a buyer's attention.

I missed the Taylor King showroom altogether. Ran out of time.

As usual, the Hancock and Moore showroom is fantastic and the cream of all the ones I went into. They spend a lot of time to dress the place up and it presents so nicely. They are working hard to stay on top and asked me what I needed as a dealer. I told them everything is working smoothly with the exception of custom-modified items and shipping damage repairs, which are taking far too long. They promised to add at least two new craftsman to that area as soon as they can find good talent, there's a huge shortage of qualified workers at that level and they say that for every twenty-five applicants they get, only one can meet their work standards. But hopefully there will be speed-ups in that department next year.

I took fewer photos this year than in the past, and only of pieces that I was interested in or had a story to tell. I'll post them all here over the next several days.

One of the things I have cooked up with Hancock and Moore is to run a display of bar stools in my store. Most every new or remodeled home has counters these days but it's very difficult to find better quality counter stools to try out. When I was in the Century showroom, this work table they make caught my eye (CR9-850). The plan is to buy one of these and use it as a store fixture, it's not going to be for sale. Then we will put eight different counter stools around it (one of each type) from Hancock and Moore plus Jessica Charles so that if you do come to the store, you can try them out at a real counter. I hope to have this in place 1st quarter 2019 and think it will be a huge help in picking out bar stools. I told H&M to pick out the best stools, my only requirement was one of them had to be the Steele Farm because I think that's the best counter stool I have ever sat on.

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Let's start off with some fun stuff. Hancock and Moore always is cutting edge and to that end will do all sorts of custom work to pieces. One thing they do very well is custom paint on the leather, and it was a real treat to see their artist Wayne who was set up in a section of the showroom to do a demo of his painting. He's a really great guy, easy to talk to - and can paint anything you want. I really enjoyed this one custom chair he finished up for a Texas customer. Her husband is giving this to his wife as a surprise (hope she is not on this forum!) and furnished this 4" x 6" photo for Wayne to work from. He told me he spent 1/4 of the entire time just on her face and painted that part first, because that had to be perfect. Look at what a great job he did....for the record he did this on the leather panel then it was made into the chair. You can bet the sewer and upholsterer were extra careful making this piece so they would not mess it up.

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And a photo I took of the artist and another chair he was working on, this one the painting is done on a chair already made up. If you can imagine it - they can paint it. As for cost, its done by the hours required to create the painted effect.

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I hadn't thought of that before, but I bet that a lot of athletes would love a chair like that to capture a great moment in their careers.

One of the chairs I ordered for stock the # 5364-TL Artist Chair in Hyde Park Merlot Burnished (GR 3) this one really jumped out at me and the leather/wood combo is striking plus I really like the way this one sits - upright (no slouch) but not stiff. Ordered just as shown. Will have special Market pricing when it arrives , probably in January.

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Hancock and Moore's # 5697-1 Shin Warmer Chair. It's not new, but this one has a sassy look and the chair sits wonderfully as a easy-to-pull-up occasional chair. Break out of the browns and live a little.....
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The Axel Chair is new for H&M and is a sharp-looking small transitional chair that I liked well enough to order an identical chair to this one for floor stock. The hide on this is new, called Markle, and its the softest, most elegant leather that H&M has every had in their line. It feels like BUDDAH !

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I didn't order any new sofas for stock from H&M, but if was going to this would have been my pick. It's called the Bennet Tufted Sofa # 6575-3 and shown in GR 2 Coast Stone. The form factor on this is magnificent. Look at the waterfall effect on the tufting and it comes to the seat edge and continues to the front border. This is art - this piece has an extremely high level of workmanship. Look around at other makers - do they make pieces like this? No, they don't...because it's hard as heck to do and requires a master craftsman to get alignments straight. Other furniture makers simply don't have the talent to build this, which is all done by hand, not a machine. I'd kick this up a couple of notches on the leather grade to the new GR 4 Markle series and have a masterpiece in the room. Terrific.

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Markle better than Capri? High praise indeed from you!

Yes, it’s softer and more elegant, however it will show subtle marks so it’s not for those who don’t understand or appreciate that

Here's a new feature for the Your Way Motion Series. H&M Finally listened to me when I told them the motion furniture was too heavy and extremely difficult to deliver. So they have been working at making them as individual components that we can get into lower level living spaces such as basements and the like. Also, they are making interior sections with full recliners. Here's a unit they had on display in Angelo Birch leather (Track Arm / Split Back / Tapered Leg). The area tinted pink shaded in the photo does not recline, its stationary. The center section on the left side has its own corded remote that you can see in the photo. This is also an articulating headrest model and I rotated one headrest forward for the photo so you can see it.

Additionally, if you don't want a motion piece on an end, they will make that stationary for you.

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Here's an Emilio sofa # 5712-3 that is not new, but it was a knock out with the hides used. The new Markle Royal leather and Croc Indigo on the arms. I liked this so much I ordered this combo for the floor in a Monaco recliner. I specified the same leathers and colors, and do the Monaco in Markle Royal overall with side panels in Croc Indigo, then will use black lacing for the arms and Belgian Chocolate finish. When this recliner arrives - probably in February - I predict it will be stunning.

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This sofa is new and called the Muse Sofa # 6549-3. Shown in Caress Taupe with Premium finish Sand, CC nail trim. I liked this sofa, however I don't think the color combo was right on it. This needs definitive contrasts on the wood trim to make it "pop" and at first glance you hardly see there is an exposed wood frame on it. Sofa sits very well, just watch those corners when moving it - that wood can be easily damaged if careless with the sofa in handling it through doorways, etc.

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Showing off the custom lacing at Hancock and Moore. these can be added to any piece - note that you only want to do this treatment on a tight back piece, not cushions with core inserts in them.

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Two new Arm Styles for the Your Way series at Hancock & Moore (stationary)

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Also, a small "Lunar" Occasional Table by H&M, I liked this enough to order a floor model. I think my photo is better than theirs : http://www.hancockandmoore.com/Produ...hairside-Table

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Thank you for fixing the attachments! Lovely pieces.

The Sundance series is very popular but is large in size. Hancock and Moore made a series smaller in size called the Redford.

Shown at Market:

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While not new, this H&M Manning recliner gets a different look in a Jessica Charles fabric. You can cross platform fabrics (and leathers) from Century, Jessica Charles, Highland House and Taylor King intercompany for only a nominal transfer fee.

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Another new sofa from Hancock & Moore.

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New tight back sofa with a transitional look and a new leather intro from Hancock and Moore.

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Hancock & Moore # 6498-41 Newbury Two Seat Bench (also available as a one seater)

Leather shown: Allie Hunter. Finish is Belgian Chocolate (premium).

19" H 40" W 20" D

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Three Seat version # 6498-60:

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